A Teen's Guide to Engineering

Dr. Jim Gifford is a nuclear engineer and US Army Colonel with more than twenty-five years of service. He currently serves as the Senior WMD Effects Officer at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, where he has specialized in nuclear and counter-WMD operations since 2013. A combat veteran, Dr. Gifford has served in various leadership positions since commissioning into the Field Artillery in 2001, including three deployments to Iraq.

An accomplished educator, Dr. Gifford has taught at the US Army’s Field Artillery School, the United States Military Academy at West Point, and the Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy. He currently teaches high school physics and chemistry online. His academic background includes a BS in Chemistry from West Point, an MA from Webster University, an MS in Chemical Engineering from MIT, and a PhD in Nuclear Engineering from North Carolina State University. He lives with his wife, Natalie, and their five children: Cole, Alli, Avery, Cooper, and Rori.